When the World Goes Dark
by Teamprison18
Summary: When Kara Helt and Randall are held prisoner by Rick's group at Hershel's farm, all hell breaks loose when she tries to escape. But when she and Randall receive a death sentence, all she wants is to leave with Randall. But with their injuries, how are they supposed to escape?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Trigger-finger

Four gunshots. All in sequence. Those things break the silence between my group. We're out scouting in a nearby town. Dave and Tony took off when we arrived. Dumb-asses. They refuse to stay with the group. Ten minutes passed before the gunshots tore through town.

"Hey. Kara. You hear that?" Bud asks. "Yeah. Think it was Dave and Tony?" I ask. "No! They are stupid, but not that stupid." Craig says. I laugh at that. "Yeah. They are pretty stupid. But I wouldn't mark this on their 'too stupid list'." Everyone laughs at that. "Come on Kara. We need to look for these idiots. Not talk about them." Joe states. "Okay mom." I say. Bud and Craig snicker. Joe glares at them.

"Randall. You and Kara head up to that roof. Give us an eye in the sky." Joe orders. We head up there obediently.

"Dave! Tony!" Everyone whisper-yells. "We're looking for Dave and Tony and no one checks the damn bar!?" Joe says. They go and open the door. It slams in their faces. "Yo! Someone in there? Yo! Someone's in there we don't want no trouble. We're just looking for our friends. We don't want any trouble. We're just looking for our friends. If something happened tell us. This place is crawling with corpses. If you could help us not get eaten, that'd be great." Joe yells. A minute passes and nothing happens. An answer comes out from the bar. I'm too far away and I can't hear it.

They're all silent for a while. Then another voice comes from the bar. They open fire. Glass shatters from the front windows. When they cease fire all is quiet. Then a reply to the gunfire comes from the bar. Silence.

I see movement in the back windows of the bar. I shoot the windows. A shout. Then nothing. Shawn circles the building and stands at the far corner of the building. A door creaks open and a guy sneaks out. Shawn shoots twice and the guy hits the ground. Another guy leans out of the door and shoots Shawn. Shawn writhes on the ground in pain. Moaning. Another guy runs out of the building towards the fallen guy. Randall and I shoot but miss.

Joe, Bud, and Craig drive up. "Let's get out of here! Roamers are all over the place! Hurry up! We gotta get out of here!" Joe yells. "What about Shawn?" Randall yells. "They shot him! We gotta go! Roamers are everywhere!" Joe yells. "We're leaving?" I ask. "Jump! Hurry up jump already!" Joe answers. Randall jumps. He doesn't make it. He lands on the spikes of a fence. It impales his leg. "Hey! Wait! Don't leave us!" We yell. "Sorry! We gotta go!" Joe yells and drives off. Those bastards drove off without us! They left us!

Randall yells out in pain. Those guys from the bar run towards us. I raise my gun. "Get away from us!" I yell. Shawn screams. Those lame-brains got to him. The Asian one points his rifle at me. "Back up!" I yell. The taller, more scruffier guy continues to run towards me and Randall. "I'll shoot!" I yell. They seem oblivious to me. "Where's Hershel?!" The taller guy yells. An older man yells, "Rick! We have to go now. I'm sorry kid. We have to go now." I zone out. All I hear is Shawn and Randall's screams. I drop my gun. The taller guy, Rick, shakes the gate. Randall screams. I train my gun on him again. Hershel and Rick turn around and start talking. The Asian guy has his gun trained on my too. They start trying to cut his leg off. I lunge towards them. The Asian guy grabs me. Moaning surrounds us. The Asian guy looks around. "Guys. Walkers!" The Asian guy yells. He lets me go. I look around and fire off shots.

Corpses drop all around me. "Kara! Talk to them!" Randall screams. The older seems to take notice of me for the first time. Rick is yelling at Randall to shut up. He looks around. "Oh god. They're everywhere." Rick says. He shoots too. Rick yells to Hershel. I'm trying to convince Hershel to not cut off Randall's leg.

They start to leave! "No! No! Don't leave us! Hey! Please!" Randall yells. Rick turns around and tears Randall's leg off of the gate spike. I scream and grab Randall's hand. They drag him towards their truck. I run after them. "Nuh huh. Not you!" Rick yells. "What! No. Please!" I plead. "Just let her come!" Hershel yells. Rick steps out of the way and I climb into the back of the truck. The Asian kid climbs back there after me. I kneel down by Randall. I grab his hand. "No. No Randall. Stay with me baby." I murmur softly to him. I lay his head on my lap. The Asian guy looks down at us. I think he heard me. I don't care though.

Tears flow down my cheeks. Randall's eyes start to close. "No. No baby. You can't leave me. I need you. Don't leave. Stay awake." I say softly. His eyes flutter open. I lock eyes with him. "I'll never leave." He says. I barely hear it. A small smile plays on his lips, mine too. His eyes close, but his hand stays clamped tightly around mine.

~%~

I wake up to the sudden stop of the van. I'm blindfolded. I don't remember this. I hear people talking around me. "What the hell is that?!" Someone says. I grope around for the blindfold and pull it off of my head. Their group is huge. Like ten, twenty people. They take Randall out of the van and start towards the house. I jump out after them. "Hey! What's she doing here?! Who is she?!" A big, bulky man yells. He charges towards me and I jump back. He pins me against the hood of the van. I scream and he is ripped away from me. I turn back around and face the group. "Give me your guns. Now!" Rick yells at me. I quickly hand over my gun. Everyone studies me.

People slowly peel away and I'm soon left with Rick and the bulky man. "Take her to that shed over there." Rick says. He must be the ringleader here. The bulky man drags me over to a lone shed a few yards from the big, colonial house. I trip and fall. He pulls me up quickly. "Come on." He yells. He throws me in there and slams the door shut. I slam my body against the door. It doesn't budge. "Dammit!" I yell. I scream in frustration and kick the door. Nothing. I collapse against the door and cry. What are they doing to him? I can't save him. I'm stuck in here! Dammit Kara! I'm so weak. I can't do anything! All these thoughts go through my head. I set my head down on my knees and cry.

Stop it! Get up and break down this damn door! I jump to my feet and throw all my weight against it. It shakes. I smile inwardly. I do it again. And again. And again. Sunlight peeks through a crack between the ceiling and the door. I throw my body against it. It cracks. I kick it with all the force in my body. The door flies open.

I run towards the house. "Hey! Stop!" Someone yells. A girl. I whip my head around to see a blonde chick hop down off of an R.V. I continue to run towards the house. A shot goes off. The bitch shot at me! I kick it into double time. Bulky greets me at the door. He grabs me by my waist and lifts me over his shoulder. I hear Randall scream. "Randall!" I yell. I fight against Bulky and try to fight my way inside the house. Bulky throws me to the floor and I jump to my feet. He grabs me by my hair and drags me to the shed. "Son of a bitch!" He curses. I jerk out of his grasp and make a break for the woods. If I can make it back to the group I can get them to come rescue Randall.

A searing pain floods my leg and I fall to the ground. I've been shot. They friggin' shot me. I think someone stabbing me in my thigh with a hot fire poker would feel better than this. I clutch my leg and scream in pain. Some guy, not Bulky, reaches under me and grabs me by my waist. He throws me over his shoulder and begins to walk back towards the house. "Stop. Let go of me!" I scream hitting and kicking at him. He throws me on the ground. "Shut up! You shut up and quit it!" He yells at me. He's some redneck hick. He punches me right in the face. I go sprawling. He draws back again and I shrink back and block my face. The hit doesn't come. I look back and he is standing over me. Bulky's running towards us with his gun trained on me. I actually think he might shoot me now. "Shane! Shane stop!" Rick yells running towards me. Bulky, Shane, cocks his gun. "Shane! Stop!" Rick yells again. Instead of shooting me, he clocks me in the head with the but of his gun. The world spins then goes black.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter two

18 Miles Out

Soon they return him to the shed. Bulky, Shane, fixed the door so we couldn't escape. I tried breaking it down again, but they reinforced it. They handcuffed us to the inside of the shed. They're sadistic. Insane. I've heard they're going to let us live though. I hope they go through with it too.

"Randall. Baby. Are you okay?" I whisper. A soft moan is all I receive in an answer. I don't know what to take it as. He's alive, but those bastards hurt him bad. "Randall. Baby. I need you to talk to me. Are you okay?" I whisper. He nods, but cringes. He isn't okay. My left eye is swollen shut from where that hick clocked me in the eye. I'm going to beat his ass when they let us go.

"Well come on now! We ain't got all damn day!" Shane says when he opens the door. He uncuffs me and Randall. He drags us across the yard to where Rick is standing by a Hyundai. Shane throws us down and rick ties us up and puts duck-tape over our mouths. He then covers my head with a black bag and turns on some loud-ass hard rock crap and throws us in the trunk.

About maybe five or six miles away from the farm, we stop. Then about five minutes later, they rip the sack off my head. I struggle against my ropes but it's no use. They rush to put the bag back on my head. Then we start up again.

This has to be the longest car ride ever. It feels like we drove halfway across the state instead of eighteen miles. At least that's what I heard people say. People say they're going to drop us off eighteen miles out.

We finally stop. The lurch of the car signals that. I wonder where we're at. A dump? A school? An office building? There's no telling. All I know right now is the dark and loud. And it isn't pleasant.

Then the car starts up again. Dammit. They probably just stopped to piss or something. We aren't going anywhere. Then the car stops again. They grab us and yank us out into the open air. They push us forward. I limp slightly from the gunshot wound to my thigh. But they still push us forward. I trip and fall. Gravel cuts into my face. Whoever's holding me yanks me up.

They yank the bag off my head and the light blinds me. They pull off the duck tape on my mouth and ears. They pull out the earbuds from my ears and throw me to the ground. Randall lands beside me. They didn't untie our hands and feet. "What the hell is this?!" I say. I turn around on my knees. They start walking away. Randall turns around too.

"Come on. Don't be stupid! We owe you guys! We can help protect what you got!" I yell after them. "Why would you save our lives just to kill us by leaving us here! Two people. Two people can't make it alone! That's why we were with those dudes. We were alone!" Randall yells. Rick throws a knife over to us. "Don't be stupid. We're not like them." Randall yells. He falls on the ground. I knee walk over there to help him up. He shrugs me away and continues. "I'm just some guy. I used to watch football and screw around on the internet. I lived with my mom. I lost her like you lost people." Randall yells. I remember Mrs. White. She was bit early on. It hit Randall hard. I'm surprised he brought it up. He never likes to talk about it. "We went to school with Maggie for God's sake!" I yell. They stop and Rick turns around. They start back towards us.

"Went to church. Ruled the bench on varsity baseball!" Randall yells. "Y'all went to school with Maggie?!" Rick yells. "Y'all go to school with Maggie?!" Shane yells. He looks pissed. "I asked you a question! Did you go to school with Maggie!?" Shane yells. "I. I. She didn't know us. She didn't even know we existed." Randall excuses. "I knew her. I knew who her dad was." I yell. "There is no way we would do anything to hurt her or her family. Or you. Or your people. We're not like those guys we were with!" Randall concludes.

Rick and Shane start to talk to each other in hushed voices. Shane pulls his gun. "Shane no!" Rick yells pushing the gun away from us. Shane fell. The shot hit the ground a couple of feet from Randall's head. "Not now. Just not now!" Rick yells. Shane sits up against the cop car. "Well when Rick, when?" Shane asked. "When I've had a chance to think about it." Rick says. "Don't let him kill us. Please don't!" Randall pleads. Is he that weak? I'd never plead for my life. Never like that. He sounds like a blubbering child. Pathetic. I'm stringer than that. "Shut up!" Rick yells. "We're going back. It's people's lives. I need a night to think it through." Rick says. "You're going to bring these pieces of garbage. These pieces of garbage. They shot at you Rick. They ran with men who tried to kill you. You're going to bring them back. To where Lori sleeps. To where Carl sleeps." Shane rants. "They'll be locked up in the barn. Unless you bust it open." Rick taunts.

"Oh don't start that shit." Shane yells. "I'm taking the night." Rick says. "Naw man. You take that. You think on it Rick. Keep. Keep struggling with it. It ain't hard man. The right choice is the one that keeps us alive. It's always the same with you. It's at the first moment. It's whenever you're put to the test." Shane rants. He starts to stand up. "Stop acting like you know the way ahead. Like you know the rules. There are no rules man. We're lost." Rick says. "No no man. I know exactly where I am." Shane says over Rick. "You don't know shit anymore." Rick yells. "I don't think you can do it man." Shane says. "It's my call." Rick says. "I don't think you can keep them safe." Shane says.

There's an eery silence. Then Rick draws back and slugs Shane right in the face. Shane head buts Rick and tackles him to the ground. Shane grabs Rick's gun. Rick wrestles the gun from Shane's hand.

I spot the knife laying only a few feet away. "Randall." I say. He looks at me and I gesture towards the knife. He starts to inch forward to grab the knife. I still see Rick and Shane fighting. One minute Rick has the upper hand the next Shane does. They're going to kill each other. Randall is still inching slowly toward the knife.

Then I hear Shane yell and glass shatters. I look around but don't see anything. Then I hear the moans of corpses. "Shit." I mumble. A corpse stumbles towards us. "Randall. Corpse." I whisper. It falls near me. I roll out of its way and kick its arm, breaking it. He snaps the ropes on his hands and feet with the knife. "Come on bitch. Let's see what you got." Randall says. He jumps onto the female corpse and stabs it in the head. Once. Twice. Three times.

"Randall. Randall. It's dead." I say. He stops and looks at me. I hold my hands out and he walks over and snaps the ropes. On my feet too. I stand up and stand back to back with Randall. I see an abandoned crowbar laying a few feet away. I run and bring it back. I'm armed now bitches. I think to myself. No corpses bother us. It's like we're invisible. I smile. Loud-ass people. They're shooting those guns. Attracting all those things. Serves them right. Especially Shane. He tried to shoot us. He shot me back at the farm for God's sake!

Rick comes from around the corner of the building and grabs me. "Holy shit!" I say. Rick pins me against a car. He drags me down the side of the car. Randall drops his knife when he sees Rick's gun.

"Let's go. We're going." Rick says. "Oh hell yeah." I hear Randall say. I smile. We're leaving that douchebag, Shane behind in a bus swarmed by corpses. Hell yeah.

We start towards the Hyundai. "You drive." Rick says to Randall. I climb in the back and Rick gets shotgun. "Drive through the gate." Rick says. Dammit. We're going back for that douche. I think. I don't say anything though.

We drive through the gate and by the bus. Rick, hanging out the window yells, "Shane! Go through the back door. Come on!" Rick shoots several corpses in the process of driving by. I see Shane run through the bus to the back. We stop and let him jump in the back window. He falls in next to me. I scoot closer to the door. Randall busts through another gate.

"Oh yeah! Hell yeah! Did you see that?! Did you see what we just did!?" Randall yells. "Just keep driving!" Rick yells and Randall does.

A mile or so later Shane clocks me in the back of my neck. When I wake up we're back in the trunk I suppose. It's dark and loud. I'm tied up and duck tape is over my mouth. We're headed back to the farm I suppose.

When I get out of here, they are so going to regret doing this to us. I may have seemed bad before, but honestly I was scared. I thought he, meaning Shane, was going to kill us flat out. But Rick was so soft that he wasn't gonna let Shane do that. I'm going to kill Shane. I don't care if it's the last thing I do.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter three

Judge, Jury, Executioner

Bam! "Randall!" I yell. That hick puts a blow across his face. Again. He hits him again. "I told you!" I yell. The hick turns toward me. "You ain't told me shit!" The hick yells at me. "We barely knew those guys. We met 'em on the road!" Randall says.

"How many in your group? The hick asks. Randall doesn't answer. Just stammers. The hick takes out his knife. "Hey man! No no no no no!" I plead. His slams his knife down in front of Randall. "Thirty!" Randall yells. "Where!" The hick asks. "We don't know! We swear! We were never any place more than a night." I scream. He stabs Randall's knee. "Scoutin'? Plannin' on stayin' local?" He starts to carve his knee. "We don't know. They left us behind."

"Have you ever picked off a scab?" Hick says. "Come on man. I'm trying to cooperate." Randall says. That hick never laid his hands on me. "Start real slow at first. But sooner or later you just gotta rip it off." This hick is sadistic. Like the rest of this camp. "Okay! Okay! They have weapons. Heavy stuff. Automatics. But we didn't do anything." Randall says. "Your boys shot at my boys. Try to take this farm. So you just went along for the ride. Your trying to tell me you're innocent?!" The hick says.

"Yes! These people took me in! Not just guys. A whole group of 'em. Men and women. Kids too. Just like you people. I mean, look at Kara! I thought I'd have a better chance with them ya know." The hick stands up.

"But we go out. Scavenge. Just the men. Occasionally we take the girls. Usually Kara!" Randall says. "One night we found this little campsite. A man and his two daughters. Teenagers. real young. Real cute." My head snaps to attention at this. I wasn't there. This is news to me. The hick's does too. "The guy had to watch as those guys they…they didn't even kill 'em afterwards. They just made him watch. As his daughters." I covered my mouth. "They just left them there. But I didn't touch those girls. I swear. I didn't." That hick draws back and kicks him. "He ain't like that!" I scream. He kicks Randall in the crotch and he falls over. I scream as he keeps in kicking and punching him. He finally leaves. But he never laid a hand on me.

~%~

Randall strains against his bonds. Some blonde chick started standing watch out there a while ago. We ain't going anywhere. I can't even stand up. "Hello? Hey. Can get some water? Please? I'm very thirsty." She doesn't respond. "They're gonna kill us right?" I say. No response.

A kid starts talking. Then Shane's voice. Maybe it's his kid. Then Shane starts talking to the blonde. It's muffled. But I hear some words. "Problem." "Hurt." "Kill 'em." I start to panic.

Sand pours down on my head. I tilt my head up. But I can't see anything. "Hey. That's a sweet hat. My names Randall. Kara's underneath that pipe. What's your name?" No response. Is everyone here mute?! "Sheriff guy? That's your dad? I like him. Yeah he's a good guy. I can tell. Your mom out here too? You're lucky you still got your family. I lost mine. I don't know what people been saying about me, but I didn't do nothing. I swear. Your dad, he was gonna let me go until his friend started fighting with him." The kid starts climbing down the ladder. How in the hell did he get in here?! He's young. Real young. The kid looked my way. I send him a small smile at him. He remains emotionless and turns his gaze back to Randall.

"It got pretty bad. I was kinda worried. Our camp. We got lots of supplies. You help us, we take you and your folks back to my people. We'll take good care of you. Keep you safe. You just gotta help us get out of here, okay. Just help us pick these locks, or find the key. Please. Please." Randall pleads. He pulls against his chains. He makes the whole shed creak.

The door opens. Shane busts in. I jump. "What the hell you doin' in here? What you say to him? Man what'd you say to him?" He yells. He pushes the kid away from Randall. Shane pulls his gun. The blonde does too. Shane points the gun at Randall and the blonde points hers at me. "I will shoot you where you stand, do you hear me?! You like talking?! You like talking?! Open your mouth man!" He presses his gun to Randall's mouth.

"Stop it!"I yell. "Shane! Shane stop it!" The blonde yells. He backs away from Randall and points his gun at me. "Did you say something too?! Did you talk to him too?!" I shake my head. "She didn't say anything Shane!" The kid yells, desperation in his voice. Shane turns on the kid. "Come on. Get your ass out there." Shane, yells grabbing the kid. The blonde runs out after Shane and the kid.

I turn to Randall. "Are you an idiot?! Are you that desperate?!" I yell. The confused look on his face makes me even angrier. "Rick is obviously in charge around here! Shane is just going AWOL. Rick ain't going to kill us! That kid ain't going to let us go!" I yell.

"Hey! Shut up!" The blonde yells. She beats the side of the shed. I roll my eyes. Maybe a walker will get her. What am I doing? What am I thinking? I'm not like that. I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Maybe Shane. But still.

~%~

Andrea

"Are you an idiot?! Are you that desperate!?" I hear the girl yell. "Rick is obviously in charge here! Shane is just going AWOL! Rick ain't going to kill us. That kid ain't going to let us go!"

My god. She doesn't know. Guilt tugs at my heart strings. "Hey! Shut up!" I yell. I hit the side of the shed. I honestly want to leave. But I won't. She reminds me so much if Amy. So optimistic. Not wanting to face death. A tear rolls down my face. I quickly wipe it away.

~%~

Daryl

I'm one of the last ones to walk into Herschel's home. I don't care about this. They talk. It goes back and forth. Then Maggie says, "Couldn't we keep them prisoners?" I speak up. "Two more mouths to feed." That's ridiculous.

That girl's face keeps making its way into my mind. Her, well, fear. She was scared of me. She should be. What am I thinking? She needs to be scared of me. I could kill her if I wanted to. But those baby blue eyes filled with fear make their way into my mind. A minuscule amount of guilt tugs at my heart strings. I shrug it off.

"It's decided then!" Dale says. He walks by me. He puts his hand on my shoulder and says, "a You're right. This group is broken." And walks out. I follow him with my eyes. I shake my head and walk out.

~%~

Kara

It's night when they come and get us. They shove us towards the barn. They open the doors and Shane pushes himself against me. He shoves a black cloth over my head. "This'll all be over soon."

"What? What's gonna be over soon?!" Randall says. I start to panic. "Would you like to stand or kneel?" Rick asks. Shane pushes me to the ground. I hear Randall hit the ground as well. A gun cocks in front of my face. Tears start to stream down my face. Then someone moves away from me. "Do you have any final words?" Randall starts to whimper. A steady stream of tears roll down my face. A shot. I scream. Then motion in front of me. The gun cocks again. I'm screaming. Then a voice. "Do it dad. Do it." It's that kid from earlier. "Are you kidding me?!" Shane asks. "Take her away." Rick says.

They pick me up and throw me back into that shed. That hick chains me up. It's eerily quiet. I cry and scream. They killed him. They killed my baby brother! I can never forgive them of this. Ever! "Why?! Why'd ya have to kill him?! Why didn't ya kill me first?!" I scream. The hick remains emotionless.

A scream. One different than mine. A man's scream. The hick runs out of the shed and leaves the door open. I buck against the chains. I'm going to leave! I have to leave! I strain and pull against the chains. They don't budge.

A gunshot. Then silence.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter four

Better Angels

I don't know how long I cried. They shot him. They shot Randall. He's dead. And I'm still here. Alone. Why couldn't they have left us there in town? We wouldn't have had to deal with them. We would have died together. If only… I lost my little brother! A sob escapes me. Why didn't they kill me first?! Why did he move from me to Randall? It should have been me! I said I would protect him, but I didn't. I should have fought harder. I should have. I should have. I close my eyes. I don't want to deal with the harsh reality. I slip into a fitful sleep.

~%~

We're back in the barn. I see us from far off. From the corner of the barn. I'm here but I see myself beside Randall. It was Rick. He stands in front of me. He cocks his gun. His hand falters and he moves in front of Randall. "Do you have any final words?" He asks. I scream. I tell him to stop. But he doesn't seem to hear me. I try to run but I stay rooted in place. I can't move. I start to panic. I can't move. I can't stop it!

Randall whimpers. He cries. My heart breaks in half. It shatters. The gunshot. Randall's head snaps back and he crumbles to the ground.

~%~

My eyes snap open and I scream. The blindfold and duck tape prevent anyone from hearing my screams and from me seeing anything. I have to get out of here. I strain against the handcuffs. They cut into my skin. The door opens. Someone walks in. They slam something down in front of me. I start to whimper. They've come back for me. They're going to kill me. As this realization dawns on me I calm down. Whoever is sitting across from me is breathing deeply. Then the sound of slapping enters my ears. Then the cock of a gun. I whimper again. The shot doesn't come. Whoever bends me over. After a moment, I'm thrown backwards.

"Get up. Now!" The man yells. "I can't!" I spit. A hard hand comes across my face. It snaps to the side. I scream. "Shut up. I uncuffed ya dumbass. Now get up." He yanks me up. He drags me out of the shed and hopefully away from it. I see flashes of dry leaves and trees. I'm whimpering. "Go that way." The voice says. I trip and fall face first into the ground.

I'm yanked up. The blindfold is removed and I see Shane. I scuttle away as fast as I can. He catches my shirt. "I get it. I'm the last face you want to see. Listen. Imma take you up outa here. I'm gonna get this off of you so you can breathe. And I want you to keep quiet. And listen good do you hear me? Don't do nothing stupid." Shane says. He peels the duck tape off of my mouth.

"Hey. Keep it quiet. Where's your group? You know where they're at?" He asks. "I don't." I say. He pulls me close to his face. I don't wait to see what he says next. I decide right then, I'll live. For me and for Randall. I throw my head forward with everything I have. It collides with his nose and I hear a crunch. He yells and falls back. I crawl away from him. He falls limp and doesn't move. I knocked him out.

I crawl towards him slowly. I see his knife in reach down slowly and grab it. No reaction from him. I cut myself loose. I see his gun. I grab it as well. I ain't going back there. And I ain't going back to the highway. They'd kill me. Randall was the only reason they didn't kill me or worse. I shudder at the thought. I turn around and walk.

~%~

It's getting dark. And I'm actually getting worried. It's not safe to be out after dark. I need to find somewhere to stay. At least for the night. A hear the crunching of leaves. Then voices. "What's the point of this?! Give me a light." I know that voice anywhere. It's that hick. I freeze. No need for them to shoot me. "Two sets of tracks." He says. I move with them. I don't think they know though. A branch snaps underneath my foot. They disappear behind trees.

How am I going to do this? I have to let them know it's me. Not a corpse. But I think I'd get shot either way. I'll call out. Well, here goes nothing.

"Hey. Hey. I ain't gonna do anything. I promise. I'm putting my gun down. I'll slide it over to ya. I ain't a corpse."I say. I throw my gun in between the trees. The hick steps out from behind his. Then a Korean boy steps out behind his.

The hick gets the gun and steps towards me. I raise my hands in surrender. He points a crossbow at me. "What're ya doin?" He asks. "I don't want y'all to kill me. Please. Please don't kill me. I'm unarmed. Please." I plead. They look at each other. Then at me. Tears roll down my face. They were there. They were there when Rick killed my little brother. They didn't stop him. The Korean steps closer to me. Spots dance in my vision. My knees feel weak. A gunshot. My knees fall out beneath me. I fall. The Korean catches me.

~%~

When I wake up I'm at the house. An old man is standing above me. "Hey." He says. I sit up. My head spins. I stay sitting up though. "She's awake." The old man says. He leaves. I get up. Everyone is in a panic. I look out the window. Miles upon miles of walkers lay before me.

Oh shit.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter five

Beside the Dying Fire

Gunshots echo. Around me. I'm unarmed. I'm alive! I run down the stairs. Almost no one is in the house. A young blonde about maybe seventeen or eighteen , a brunette about thirty, a short haired lady about thirty, and a woman about forty. They're leaving the house. "Hey! Wait!" I scream. A tear rolls down my face. Everything is gone. They look at me. "Come on!" The older lady yells. We run outside of the house. It's swarmed.

We're running and the older woman is attacked. I scream. I'm cut off! The blonde is screaming. I can't help her. I run off. The short haired lady runs beside me. We're blocked by a barn. We're surrounded on all sides. I scream. The lady shoots. And shoots again. Then a walker collapses right in front of me. The blonde from yesterday is standing behind it. "Look out!" I scream. A walker falls on top of her. I run. The lady stays behind.

I have to get away. Run! I run as fast as I can. I'm crying, I'm wailing for some help. All I hear is the moans of the dead. "Help me!" I scream. "Help me!"

The roar of a motorcycle gets my attention. I run towards the road. The hick on the motorcycle sees me. "Come on! I ain't got all day!" He yells. I climb on just as the walkers reach us. "Go!" I yell. Without thinking I wrap my arms around him. He stiffens.

My tears dry on my face. I never let go of his waist. We see a light green Hyundai. The redneck follows it. Who is it? Obviously someone from the farm. We follow it for miles. We're back on the main road now. I see Rick and that kid. And the old man. They run to meet us.

I get off of the redneck's bike quickly. I stand back. Everyone embraces. The redneck looks at me. Soon everyone is. "There's no reason for you to stay." Rick says. "But. But. I have nowhere else to go." I say. I'm fighting tears. "Rick. Let her stay. Please. No one else should die. We can't just leave her here." The brunette says. "Lori." Rick says. She gives him a look. "Fine. She can stay." Rick says. I grin in relief. Everyone turns to Rick.

~%~

I end up riding with the redneck, who I learn his name is Daryl. He travel for about three hours when a horn sounds in the back of the caravan. We stop and Rick climbs out of the Cherokee. "You out?" Daryl calls. "Been runnin' on fumes for the past hour." Rick says. I sign. We decide to make camp. I don't really pay attention. All of the sudden, Rick says, "We're all infected." I snap to attention at that. "What?!" I ask. Everyone looks at me. Then back at Rick. "Whatever it is, we all carry it." Rick says. I zone out. We're all infected. That echoes in my head. So when I die, I become one of those things. I start to panic. No. You can't panic right now. I calm down. Time to help make camp.

~%~

Everyone starts to talk about leaving. A branch snaps behind us. Beth is spooked. "I Keillor my best friend for you people for gods sake!" Rick says. He killed Shane. Shane ambushed Rick. A tear rolls down my face when I hear Carl cry. Everyone lapses into an uncomfortable silence. I lean back against the stone wall. My thin jacket does nothing to ward off the cold. I snuggle closer to the wall. I involuntarily shiver.

Daryl and I make eye contact. He stands and walks towards me. He sits down next to me and throws his cover around both of us. I press up against him, soaking in his warmth. He stiffens. "It's ok. I don't bite." I say lowly. A smile plays on his lips. "How was I to know that?" He says slyly. "You don't." I say.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter six

Author note!

Hi guys. I love all of my followers and thank you so much for reading. Just to let everyone know my school started last week so I will only be updating when I can. It will probably only be twice or so a month. So don't freak out. I'm just starting school. Reviews are always welcome and I will respond at the beginning of each chapter. Thanks y'all!

I'm the first to wake up the next morning. I don't know what it is, but I don't like how I went from being the enemy to being part of the group. It's way too sudden. Almost suspicious. But why am I complaining. If it weren't for Lori I'd be on my own right now. Probably dead. I owe what life I have to her because to her, I was just some prisoner with revenge on her mind. But she stuck her neck out for me anyways and now, I owe it to her.

I get up slowly and stretch. My shirt rises a little when I do. It's small. A bit small for my liking. I have to find a new one soon. Someone taps on my shoulder behind me. I turn around and meet Rick face to face. I jump back.

"Oh. Sorry I scared ya." He says. My hand flutters over my heart. "It's okay." I say. He nods. "Ya know you'll have ta pull your own weight around here right?" He asks. I'm personally offended by this and it shows on my face. "Yeah. I know this." I say, bitterness leaking into my voice. His expression doesn't change. "Good. Can you shoot? Hunt?" He asks. "Yeah." I say. "We'll need food for the camp. You and Daryl will need to go huntin soon." He says. Daryl. He's the redneck hick. The handsome-

Stop. You don't need to worry about that. He's not into you. He don't like you. You can't afford that right now. Not after him...

I shake those thoughts from my head all together. "Kara?" Rick asks. "What?" I snap. "Nothin. Just continue doin whatever ya were doin." He says. I roll my eyes and turn around. I walk to the river we set camp by and retrieve some water.

A bush rustles next to me. My head snaps in that direction. It rustles again. I reach for the knife strapped to my thigh. I found it on the table in the house we abandoned. A small, skinny body rushes at me from the bush. It moves too fast to be a walker. But all the same I scream. I drop to the ground and skitter away from it.

The body shrinks back from me. Rick and Daryl run towards us. The body skitters away from us. Daryl points his crossbow and Rick his Python at the figure. When I sit up, I really get a good look at the body. It's a small girl actually, with long, dark, black hair. It hangs in front of her face. I get up and slowly walk over to her. Daryl and Rick both lower their weapons and walk towards her. I motion for them to hang back. To let me talk to her alone so she doesn't feel trapped or get scared and run away.

"Hey. Little girl?" I say. She looks up at me and removes the hair from her face. She's actually quite pretty. She's probably about ten years old. "Don't hurt me. Please." She pleads. "We won't." Rick says. I turn my gaze towards his creeping figure and glare at him. He is slowly walking around the girl while she's talking to me. "Yeah. We won't hurt you sweetheart. What's your name?" I ask. "Adrian." She says. "It's a beautiful name." I say. She smiles. I hold out my hand to her. She hesitates. After a minute or so, she takes my hand.

We lead her back to the camp. Everyone is up by the time we get back to camp. Probably awoken by my screams. "Lori. Can you give this girl some food?" Rick asks. Everyone looks toward us. Lori gapes at the girl. Beth, Maggie, and Herschel rush forward and hug the small girl. "Adrian!" Beth squeals. "Bethy!" Adrian screams.

I look to Adrian to the Greene family. Beth has tears in her eyes. So does Adrian. She knows them. My heart sinks. I don't know why and I shake the feeling.

~%~

"Daryl! Let's go!" I yell across camp. Five weeks have passed since we found Adrian. She's grown closer with the Greene family than with anyone else. Well beside Carl. And everyday that she doesn't spend with me, it feels like I'm missing something. "I'm comin' woman." He yells. "Um… Kara." Adrian asks. "Yeah?" I say. "Where are y'all goin'?" She asks. "We're goin' hunting sweet heart." I say. "Can I come?" She asks. My heart clenches when I realize I have to tell her no. "I'm sorry Andy. You can't come with us."I say. "Why not?" She asks. "Cause. It's too dangerous for you to be out there. I don't want you to get lost." I say. She nods and walks back towards camp, hanging her head.

My heart hurts for the poor girl. After some discussion with Beth, I learned that Andy's parents were bitten and were in a barn at the farm. They never found Andy and thought the worst.

"Andy." I call after her. She turns and looks at me with renewed hope. "I'll talk to Daryl and see what he thinks. I'll let you know before we leave." I say. The girl runs back to me and wraps her arms around my neck. "Thank you." She mutters in my ear before releasing me and running to meet Carl who is walking from tent to tent waking people up.

A voice in the back of my head says 'You got that poor girl's hopes up. You know good and well Daryl ain't gonna go for bringing her along.' I shut that voice out and go to find Daryl.

"Daryl!" I say. Said man sticks his head out of his tent, with the ever-present scowl on his face. "What do you want woman?! I told ya I was coming. Ain't got no damn patience." He says, adding the last bit under his breath. "I heard that jackass." I say. "Good." He says.

"You gonna talk to me or just stand there?" He asks. I sigh and roll my eyes. Now or never I suppose. "Andy wants to come with us. Can she?" I say. Daryl freezes his back to me. Then he slowly straightens up and turns around. "Are you tellin' me you wanna take that little girl out there, where walkers are everywhere and even we don't know if we gonna make it back. Hah. Are you even zen right now? Not likely." He says. I sigh and turn on my heel. "Whatever. You don't want her goin', you tell her." I say. I couldn't handle anymore tears this morning. And ain't nobody been crying.

"Okay then. I will tell her."

~%~

Ten minutes later I see Daryl walking towards me with his crossbow strapped to his back. And not too far trailing behind him is the dark-haired girl who begged to come with us, proudly carrying one of Daryl's knifes in her hand. I snicker at the sight.

"Quit your laughin' and come on." Daryl says as he passes me. I wait for Andy to come by me and start off after her. "So I'm assuming he told you yes." I say smirking. "Yes ma'am. He even have me one of his knifes too to protect myself." She says, smiling. "That's so nice of him. Did you thank him for it?" I ask. She hesitates, thinking. "No ma'am." She says, as though just realizing it. "Then I think you should." I say. No harm in getting back at him. She nods and shoots after the redneck. I run to catch up.

At Andy's tumbling through the underbrush, Daryl turns around and is met face to face with a grinning Andy. She wraps her arms around his torso and squeezes tightly. "Thank you Mr. Daryl for letting me come. And for letting me borrow one of your knifes." She says. He visibly stiffens but Andy don't seem to notice. I laugh outright but immediately clap a hand over my mouth. Daryl glares at me and sets the child off of him. "You're welcome kid." He says.

~%~

Two hours later and we done bagged three squirrels, a rabbit, and some wild bird. Andy has been quiet and attentive the whole time. I was thoroughly impressed with her behavior. I was expecting whining but she gave no whining and no back talk. And I was eternally grateful for that.

"Mr. Daryl." I hear Andy say. He barely glances down at the kid before telling her to be quiet. "But Mr. Daryl I have ta go." She says. Daryl's face darkens to a deep deep red before turning to me and giving me a look that says, 'You take care of her.'

I roll my eyes and snicker as I lead Andy away from the trail and Daryl. "Go on. Go." I say. She smiles and I turn away so she can "go". I hear her pull up her pants and walk back towards me. On the way back to the trail, Andy turns to me and says, "Mr. Daryl's so fun to mess with. I know I coulda asked you first but his reactions are funny." She says. And I realize right then; this girl is smart. And I love her all the more for it.


End file.
